News
▼ A Message from the Artistic Directors
Dear Friends and Fellow Music Lovers,
It is once again a pleasure and privilege to savor this years festival of musical plenty with you! We know that you will enjoy the music created by our wonderful artists, but you are also a very important part of what makes performances here so special. The energy of experiencing and listening to the music is what feeds the magic of the music making here in Skaneateles, and so we thank you for being part of this years Festival as well. We also hope you will join us in appreciating our sponsors, donors, and the many people behind the scenes who allow the Festival to run so smoothly. For us, community, in every respect, is what makes the Skaneateles Festival come alive. We hope you feel and enjoy the energy of these four weeks!
Elinor Freer and David Ying
Artistic Directors, Skaneateles Festival
▼ Season at a Glance
Week 1: The Voice
From ancient times onwards, nearly all cultures have used singing for pleasure, comfort, and ritual. This week we consider the human voice to be the ultimate musical instrument, and we'll hear works by some of the great song and opera composers, as well as music that makes string instruments "sing." Join us for a fascinating intersection between sung text and instrumental playing, capped off by the Skaneateles debut of one of the worlds great a capella groups, Anonymous 4.
Week 2: SkanFest Goes Green!
Can music be a form of recycling? You bet it can, and well see how this week with the help of powerhouse composer, pianist, innovator, and musical recycler Donal Fox and virtuoso and Festival favorite Hilary Hahn. Youll hear pieces based on recycled or reused tunes or other musical ideas, jazz improvisations on the classics, earlier pieces re-worked by later composers, and much much more!
Week 3: Earth, Winds, and Fire
"There's music in the singing of a reed;
There's music in the gushing of a rill*;
There's music in all things, if men had ears;
Their earth is but an echo of the spheres."
—Lord Byron (1788-1824)
* a small brook
Week 4: Bohemian Inheritance
Even as far back as the reign of the Holy Roman Empire, the kingdom of Bohemia was a hotbed of learning, culture, and style. Come hear one of America's best conductor-less orchestras, "A Far Cry," as they acquaint us with Bohemian composers spanning several centuries. Standing at the forefront of an exciting new generation in classical music, this collective of young professional musicians—the Criers—will share the Baroque elegance of Stamitz and Tuma, the Eastern European folk melodies of DvoYák and his son-in-law Suk, and finally arrive at the avant-garde, innovative, and jazz-influenced works of Klein and Schulhoff. Be sure to Czech it out!